Category based organization and monitoring of customer service help sessions

ABSTRACT

A method and computer readable medium are provided for monitoring customer support sessions based on at least one category associated with the customer support sessions. A request from an administrator for information associated with unresolved support sessions is received. A set of support categories is presented to the administrator. A selection of at least one support category is received from the administrator. A set of first level customer support agent identifiers associated with at least one support session queued under the at least one support category which has been selected is presented to the administrator.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention generally relates to the field of customer servicecall centers, and more particularly relates to monitoring and organizingcustomer service help sessions.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Customer service support is an important aspect of businesses thatprovide products and services to consumers. In many instances customerservice support environments comprise various levels of support, whichare usually referred to as tiers. Each tier generally comprises acertain level of expertise in a field. If a lower level tier agent isunable to answer a customer's question the agent usually contacts anext-tier agent. One problem with current customer service supportenvironments is that an efficient system for managing and organizinghelp sessions between customers and first tier agents and first tieragents and higher-tiered agents does not exist. A lower tier agent mayhave to contact multiple higher tier agents to answer a customer'squestion. This can greatly increase the time a customer has to waitbefore he/she receives an answer, thereby causing the customer to have apoor customer service experience.

Therefore a need exists to overcome the problems with the prior art asdiscussed above.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Briefly, in accordance with the present invention, disclosed is a methodfor monitoring customer support sessions based on at least one categoryassociated with the customer support sessions. The method includesreceiving a request from an administrator for information associatedwith unresolved support sessions. A set of support categories ispresented to the administrator. A selection of at least one supportcategory is received from the administrator. A set of first levelcustomer support agent identifiers associated with at least one supportsession queued under the at least one support category which has beenselected is presented to the administrator.

In another embodiment, a method for monitoring and organizing customersupport session based on categories is disclosed. The method includesreceiving, by at least one first level customer support agent, a helprequest from a customer. A support session is established by the atleast one first level customer support agent with the customer inresponse to the receiving. A second level customer support agent isdetermined by the at least one first level customer support agent to berequired to resolve the help request. At least one support category isassigned to the support session by the at least one first level customersupport agent based on a support context of the support session. Thesupport session is placed into at least one support queue for selectionby at least one second level customer support agent based on the atleast one support category assigned to the support session.

In yet another embodiment, a computer readable medium for monitoringcustomer support sessions based on at least one category associated withthe customer support sessions is disclosed. The computer readable mediumincludes instructions for receiving a request from an administrator forinformation associated with unresolved support sessions. A set ofsupport categories is presented to the administrator. A selection of atleast one support category is received from the administrator. A set offirst level customer support agent identifiers associated with at leastone support session queued under the at least one support category whichhas been selected is presented to the administrator.

An advantage of various embodiments of the present invention is that asystem for organizing and monitoring customer help sessions based oncategories associated with the help sessions is provided. The variousembodiments can automatically assign and/or allow an operator to assigncategories to a help session based on the context of the help session.These categories are used to place help sessions in appropriate queuesfor further support by customer service support experts. The variousembodiments of the present invention also allow an administrator tomanage and monitor the various help sessions between an operator and anexpert to further provide an efficient and advantageous customer supportsystem.

Another advantage is that customer support centers are able to utilize acall management mechanism to help support first tier agents withexpertise through an instant messaging environment. Providing timelyinformation to the first line agent reduces the time the first tieragents need to spend interacting with the customers. This helps providebetter customer satisfaction with quick answers to a wide range ofquestions that the agent may not be familiar with and reduces the numberof agents the customer needs to speak to.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying figures where like reference numerals refer toidentical or functionally similar elements throughout the separateviews, and which together with the detailed description below areincorporated in and form part of the specification, serve to furtherillustrate various embodiments and to explain various principles andadvantages all in accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 1 is block diagram illustrating a customer service helpenvironment, according to one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating various components of thecustomer service help environment of FIG. 1 according to one embodimentof the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a session console for an operatora customer service environment according to one embodiment of thepresent invention;

FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating a session manager user interfacefor administrators in a customer service environment according to oneembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating a session manager user interfacefor expert support staff in a customer service environment according toone embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 6 is a block diagram illustrating a detailed view of an informationprocessing system according to one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 7 is an operational flow diagram illustrating a process oforganizing help sessions between a customer and an operator based oncategories associated with the help sessions according to one embodimentof the present invention; and

FIG. 8 is an operational flow diagram illustrating a process ofmonitoring help sessions between an operator and an expert based oncategories associated with the help sessions according to one embodimentof the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

As required, detailed embodiments of the present invention are disclosedherein; however, it is to be understood that the disclosed embodimentsare merely examples of the invention, which can be embodied in variousforms. Therefore, specific structural and functional details disclosedherein are not to be interpreted as limiting, but merely as a basis forthe claims and as a representative basis for teaching one skilled in theart to variously employ the present invention in virtually anyappropriately detailed structure. Further, the terms and phrases usedherein are not intended to be limiting; but rather, to provide anunderstandable description of the invention.

The terms “a” or “an”, as used herein, are defined as one or more thanone. The term plurality, as used herein, is defined as two or more thantwo. The term another, as used herein, is defined as at least a secondor more. The terms including and/or having, as used herein, are definedas comprising (i.e., open language). The term coupled, as used herein,is defined as connected, although not necessarily directly, and notnecessarily mechanically.

Customer Service Support Environment

According to one embodiment of the present invention as shown in FIG. 1a customer service support environment 100 is illustrated. The customerservice support environment 100 provides help-desk solutions tocustomers. In one embodiment, the environment 100 comprises a network102. The network 102 can include any wireless or wired networkingtechnologies. One or more customers 104, 106 are communicatively coupledto the network 102 for communicating with a customer support center 108.

In one embodiment, a customer 104 communicates with a customer serviceoperator 110 via instant messaging, landline telephone, IP-basedtelephone, text messaging, and other communication methods/devices. Itshould be noted that although the following discussion uses instantmessaging as one example of a communication method, the presentinvention is not limited to such a method. For example, voice calls area communication method applicable to at least some embodiments of thepresent invention. The customer service center 108, in one embodiment,includes one or more operators 110, experts 112, administrators 114, andinformation processing systems 116. An operator 110 includes a sessionconsole 120 that allows an operator to interact with a customer 104 andqueue an open help session for expert 112 review. The functions ofoperator(s) 110 and the session console 120 are discussed in greaterdetail below.

An expert 112 includes a session manager client 122 and a sessionmanager user interface 124 that allows the expert 112 to act upon anopen help session associated with an operator, review past helpsessions, and perform other actions with respect to help sessions. Theexpert 112, session manager 122, and session manager user interface 124are discussed in greater detail below. In one embodiment, the customerservice center 108 also includes one or more administrators 114. Anadministrator 114 manages the operators 110 and experts 112. In oneembodiment, an administrator 114 can be a “super-expert” that canprovide a higher tier of support than an operator 110 or an expert 112.An administrator 114 can also comprise a session manager client 126 anda session manager user interface 128, which are discussed in greaterdetail below.

The information processing system 116, in one embodiment, includes asession manager 118 that manages all past, present, and queued helpsessions. The information processing system 116 also includes one ormore session databases or queues 130 for managing past, present, andqueued help sessions. Stated differently, the session manager 118 allowsfor category based organization and monitoring of customer service helpsessions. The information processing system 116, session manager 118,and queues 130 are discussed in greater detail below.

Category Based Organization and Monitoring of Customer Service HelpSessions

FIG. 2 shows a block diagram illustrating a hierarchy of customers 104,operators 110, queues 130, and experts 112. In one embodiment, operators110 are the first tier of support for a customer 104. For example, whena customer 104 initiates a customer service help session with thecustomer service center 108, the request is forwarded to an operator 110via the session manager 118 of the information processing system 116.The operator 110 interacts with the customer 104 via a session console120. For example, in an instant messaging environment the sessionconsole 120 allows an operator to send and receive instant messagesto/from a customer 104. The session console 120 can also allow anoperator 110 to query a problem/solution database to assist in troubleshooting the customer's problem.

In one embodiment, if an operator 110 is unable to provide a solution toa customer's problem, the operator 110 can queue the help session forexpert support via the session console 120. For example, FIG. 3 showsone aspect of the session console 120 at an operator 110. In the exampleof FIG. 3, a customer 104 is having a problem with an application. Ifthe operator 110 is unable to help the customer 104, the operator 110via the session console 120 categorizes the current help session in toone or more categories.

For example, FIG. 3 shows a window 302 that provides a plurality ofcategories that an operator 110 can select based on the context of thehelp session. In the current example, the operator 110 can select“Applications” under a “Software” category. The operator 110 can alsofurther refine the category by selecting the actual application such asa category for “Application X”. If a specific category does not exist,the operator 110 can be given the option of creating the particularcategory. In another embodiment, a category can automatically beselected by the session console 120 based on the context of the helpsession. For example, if an operator 110 determines that he/she isunable to help the customer 104, an option can be selected on thesession console 120 that automatically queues the help session. The helpsession is parsed either by the session console 120 and/or sessionmanager 118 to automatically determine/create one or more categories tobe assigned to the current help session. It should be noted that morethan one category can be assigned to a help session. For example, if acustomer is having problems with billing software called “BillingSoftware X” the categories “Application/Billing Software X” and“Billing” can be assigned to the help session.

The operator 110 can also annotate the help session with a comment orremark in a chat window 304 of the session console 120. This window 304also allows the operator 110 to communicate with an expert 112 regardingthe current help session. Returning back to FIG. 2, once categories areassigned to a help session the help session is queued based on theassigned categories. For example, FIG. 2 shows a plurality of queues230, 232, 234 each maintaining respective help sessions In this example,a first queue 230 can maintain help sessions associated with an“Accounting” category, a second queue 232 can maintain help sessionsassociated with a “Hardware” category, and a third queue can maintainhelp sessions associated with a “Software” category. It should be notedthat these queues are only examples and the present invention is notlimited to these specific queue types or number of queues. Also, thequeues 230, 232, 234 are not limited to current open help sessions, eachqueue can maintain historical log of help sessions as well. Also, thequeues 230, 232, 234 are not limited to being separate queues. Forexample, a master queue can comprise each of the queues 230, 232, 234.

The experts 112 and administrators 114, in one embodiment, arecommunicatively coupled to the queues 230, 232, 234 via the sessionmanager client 120, 126. The session manager client 120, 126 interactswith the session manager 118 of the information processing system 116.The session manager 118, in one embodiment, maintains the queues, 230,232, 234, monitors and manages help sessions, and performs other actionswith respect to help sessions. The session manager client 120, 126includes a session manager user interface 124, 128 that provides agraphical console for the expert/administrator 112, 114 to interactwith.

An administrator 114 can manage all help sessions within the customerservice center 108. Alternatively, an administrator can be assigned to(but not limited to) a particular category of help sessions, aparticular group of operators 110 and/or experts 112. In one embodiment,administrators 114 are “super-experts” that provide one of the highestlevels of customer support. For example, an operator 110 can be firsttier support, an expert 112 can be second tier support, and anadministrator 114 can be third tier support. It should be noted that anadministrator 114 is not required to be support staff. For example, theadministrator 114 may only manage operators 110 that have queued helpsessions for expert 112 support.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating the session manager userinterface 128 of an administrator 114. The user interface 128 of FIG. 4shows a first window 402 comprising all of the queues/categories thatthe particular administrator 114 is managing such as “Hardware”,“Software”, “Administration” and any sub-queue or sub-category as well.An open session indicator 404 is given as to how many open sessions arequeued within each category. In one embodiment, an “open session” shownwithin the user interface 128 of an administrator 114 is a help requestfrom an operator 110 to an expert 112. For example, FIG. 4 shows thatunder the “Applications” category there are current two open sessions.

The administrator 114 can select any of the categories listed in thefirst window 404 to obtain additional information associated with thecategory and any open sessions. For example, FIG. 4 shows that the“Applications” category has been selected and information associatedwith that category is presented to the administrator 114 in a secondwindow 406. In one embodiment, the second window 406 illustrates eachoperator 110 associated with an open help session under the selectedcategory of the first window 402. In the current example, FIG. 4 showsthat Operator 21 and Operator 23 each are requesting help from one ormore experts 112. The administrator 114, in one embodiment, is able toselect a particular operator 110 and be presented with one or more ofthe open help sessions associated with the selected operator 110.

For example, FIG. 4 shows that Operator 21 has been selected. A thirdwindow 408 presents the current conversation between Operator 21 and anexpert(s) 112 to the administrator 114. As discussed above, an operator110 may be communicating with an expert 112 to further troubleshoot acustomer's help request. The administrator 114 is able to see thiscommunication, which allows the administrator 114 to monitor and managehelp sessions.

If an open help session has not been answered by an expert 112 or groupof experts and is stilled queued, an administrator 114 has the option ofsending the particular open help session to an expert 112. Theadministrator 114 can also requeue an open help session if theadministrator 114 determines, based on the conversation, (which can beinstant messages, test messages, or a phone conversation) that thecurrent expert 112 is unable to help the operator 110. Furthermore, ifthe administrator 114 is a “super-expert” of happens to know the answerto the customer help request, the administrator 114 can participate inthe current conversation between the operator 110 and expert 112. Theadministrator 114 can (but is not limited to) join the call between theoperator 110 and expert 112 or group of experts, participate in theinstant message session, and send files or links to prior help sessionswith relevant data. An administrator 114 can also stop a current sessionbetween an operator 110 and an expert(s) 112 or further annotate theconversation with additional categories based on the context of theconversation.

It should be noted that the user interface 128 is not limited to theexample of FIG. 4. For example, instead of or in addition to opensessions, the user interface 128 can also show past help sessions thatcan provide answers to current help session questions. The userinterface 128 can also show the duration of current sessions betweenoperators 110 and experts 112 so that if a conversation has extendedpast a given threshold, the administrator 114 can intervene. Also, if anadministrator 114 selects a particular operator 110, a list of past,current, and/or backlogged help sessions associated with the selectedoperator 110 is displayed.

FIG. 5 shows the session manager user interface 124 for an expert 112.As discussed above, an expert 112 can be associated with one or morehelp session categories such as (but not limited to) “Applications”,“Software X”, and “Hardware. FIG. 5 shows the user interface 124comprising support queue window 502, a help session window 504, and asupport database window 506. It should be noted that the expert sessionmanager user interface 124 is not limited to the configuration of FIG.5. When an operator 110 queues a help session for expert support, thesession manager 118 can either place the help session into theappropriate queue 130 for manual selection by an expert 112 orautomatically send the operator support request to the appropriateexpert. For example, the information processing system 116 maintains alist of all experts and their associated categories. The session manager118 can then route the operator support request to the appropriateexpert(s) 112.

The support queue window 502 presents to the expert 112 all of theoperator support requests associated with the expert 112. It should benoted that the customer service center 108 can be configured to let acustomer provide enough detail to allow the session manager 118 to sendthe customer's help request directly to an expert 112 as compared tofirst routing the request to an operator 110. The help session window504 allows the expert 112 to communicate with an operator 110 to furtherassist in trouble shooting a customer's help request. As discussedabove, the conversation can be monitored by an administrator 114.

The expert 112 has the option of (but not limited to) blocking operatorsupport requests, requeuing a current help session if he/she is unableto assist the operator 110, and sending the current operator supportsession to another expert(s). The support database window 506 providesan interface to a support database for assisting the operator orcustomer with the current help request.

As can be seen from the above discussion, the various embodiments of thepresent invention provide an advantageous system for organizing andmonitoring customer help sessions based on categories associated withthe help sessions. The various embodiments can automatically assignand/or allow an operator to assign categories to a help session based onthe context of the help session. These categories are used to place helpsessions in appropriate queues for expert help support review. An expertis able to be automatically sent operator help session support requestsbased on the category or categories assigned to the help session supportrequest and associated with the expert. The various embodiment alsoallow an administrator to manage and monitor the various help sessionsbetween an operator and an expert to further provide an efficient andadvantageous customer support service.

Information Processing System

FIG. 6 is a block diagram illustrating a detailed view of an informationprocessing system 600 such as the information processing system 116,according to one embodiment of the present invention. It should be notedthat the following discussion is also applicable to the informationprocessing systems of the operators 110, experts 112, and theadministrators 114. The information processing system 600 is based upona suitably configured processing system adapted to implement oneembodiment of the present invention. Any suitably configured processingsystem is similarly able to be used as the information processing system600 by various embodiments of the present invention such as a personalcomputer, workstation, or the like.

The information processing system 600 includes a computer 602. Thecomputer 602 has a processor 604 that is connected to a main memory 606,mass storage interface 608, terminal interface 610, and network adapterhardware 612. A system bus 614 interconnects these system components.The mass storage interface 608 is used to connect mass storage devices,such as data storage device 616, to the information processing system600 system. One specific type of data storage device is a computerreadable medium such as a floppy disk drive, which may be used to storedata to and read data from a CD 618 or a floppy diskette (not shown).Another type of data storage device is a data storage device configuredto support, for example, NTFS type file system operations.

The main memory 606, in one embodiment, comprises the session manager118 and the queues 130. It should be noted that with respect to theoperators 110, the memory 606 can comprise that session console 120.With respect to the experts 112 and administrators 114 the memory 606can comprise the session manager client 120, 126 and the session manageruser interface 124, 128. Although illustrated as concurrently residentin the main memory 606, it is clear that respective components of themain memory 606 are not required to be completely resident in the mainmemory 606 at all times or even at the same time. In one embodiment, theinformation processing system 600 utilizes conventional virtualaddressing mechanisms to allow programs to behave as if they have accessto a large, single storage entity, referred to herein as a computersystem memory, instead of access to multiple, smaller storage entitiessuch as the main memory 606 and data storage device 616. Note that theterm “computer system memory” is used herein to generically refer to theentire virtual memory of the information processing system 600.

Although only one CPU 604 is illustrated for computer 602, computersystems with multiple CPUs can be used equally effectively. Variousembodiments of the present invention further incorporate interfaces thateach includes separate, fully programmed microprocessors that are usedto off-load processing from the CPU 604. Terminal interface 610 is usedto directly connect one or more terminals 620 to computer 602 to providea user interface to the computer 602. These terminals 620, which areable to be non-intelligent or fully programmable workstations, are usedto allow system administrators and users to communicate with theinformation processing system 600. The terminal 620 is also able toconsist of user interface and peripheral devices that are connected tocomputer 602 and controlled by terminal interface hardware included inthe terminal I/F 610 that includes video adapters and interfaces forkeyboards, pointing devices, and other interfaces and devices.

An operating system (not shown) included in the main memory is asuitable multitasking operating system such as the Linux, UNIX, WindowsXP, and Windows Server 2001 operating system. Various embodiments of thepresent invention are able to use any other suitable operating system.Some embodiments of the present invention utilize architectures, such asan object oriented framework mechanism, that allows instructions of thecomponents of operating system (not shown) to be executed on anyprocessor located within the information processing system 600. Thenetwork adapter hardware 612 is used to provide an interface to anetwork 102. Some embodiments of the present invention are able to beadapted to work with any data communications connections includingpresent day analog and/or digital techniques or via a future networkingmechanism.

Although one of the embodiments of the present invention is discussed inthe context of a fully functional computer system, those skilled in theart will appreciate that various embodiments are capable of beingdistributed as a program product via CD or DVD, e.g. CD 618, CD ROM, orother form of recordable media, or via any type of electronictransmission mechanism.

Process of Categorizing Help Session Requests

FIG. 7 is an operational flow diagram illustrating a processcategorizing a help session request received by an operator 110 fromcustomer 104 based on the context of the request. The operational flowdiagram of FIG. 7 begins at step 702 and flows directly to step 704. Anoperator 110, at step 704, receives a customer service help request froma customer 104. The operator 110, at step 706, determines if he/she cananswer the customer's question of solve the customer's problem. If theresult of this determination is positive, the operator 110, at step 708,answers the question or solves the problem. The control flow exits atstep 710. If the result of this determination is negative, the operator110 via the session console 120, at step 712, creates an expert supportrequest.

The operator 110 via the session console 120, at step 714, assigns oneor more categories to the expert support request based on the context ofthe customer's help request. The session manager 118, at step 716,places the expert support request into one or more queues 130 based onthe category(s) assigned to the expert support request. An expert 112,at step 718, reviews the expert support request to provide support tothe operator 110. As discussed above, the session manager 118 canautomatically send expert support request to appropriate experts 112 oran expert 122 can pull expert support requests from the queues 130. Theexpert 112, at step 720, determines if he/she can help the operator 110.If the result of this determination is positive, the expert 112, at step722, helps the operator 110. The control flow then exits at step 724. Ifthe result of this determination is negative, the expert 112 andoperator 110 further troubleshoot the customer's question and/orproblem. The expert support request can also be sent to another expertor requeued. The control flow returns to step 720.

Process of Managing and Monitoring Help Session Requests

FIG. 8 is an operational flow diagram illustrating a process of managingand monitoring expert support requests based on categories assigned tothe expert support requests. The operational flow diagram of FIG. 8begins at step 802 and flows directly to step 804. An administrator 114,at step 804, logs into the session manager client 126. A list of supportcategories, at step 806, is provided to the administrator 114 via thesession manager user interface 128. The administrator 114 via the userinterface 128, at step 808, selects a category that indicates expertsupport requests exits within that particular category.

A list of operator identifiers, at step 810, is presented to theadministrator 114 for the selected category that is associated withexpert support requests within the selected category. The administrator114, at step 812, selects an operator identifier. The session manager118, at step 814, determines if a current session is open between anoperator 110 associated with the selected operator identifier and anexpert(s) 114. If the result of this determination is negative, theadministrator 114, at step 816, is provided with the options such as(but not limited to) requeuing the expert support request, answering theexpert support request, sending the expert support request to a user.The control flow then exits at step 818.

If the result of the determination is positive, the administrator 114,at step 820, is presented with real-time dialog of the conversationbetween the operator 110 and the expert 112. The administrator 114 isable to monitor the conversation and can cancel the conversation,participate in the conversation, provide support to the conversation,and perform other actions with respect to the conversation. The controlflow then exits at step 822.

Non-Limiting Examples

Although specific embodiments of the invention have been disclosed,those having ordinary skill in the art will understand that changes canbe made to the specific embodiments without departing from the spiritand scope of the invention. The scope of the invention is not to berestricted, therefore, to the specific embodiments, and it is intendedthat the appended claims cover any and all such applications,modifications, and embodiments within the scope of the presentinvention.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method, with a customer support environment,for monitoring and organizing customer support sessions based oncategories, the method comprising: receiving, by at least oneinformation processing system associated with at least one first levelcustomer support agent, a help request from a customer; establishing, bythe at least one information processing system, a support session withthe customer based on the receiving; based on establishing the supportsession, monitoring the support session between the at least one firstlevel customer support agent and the customer; receiving, by the atleast one information processing system, an indication from the at leastone first level customer support agent that a second level customersupport agent is required to resolve the help request; parsing, by theat least one information processing system based on receiving theindication, a context of the support session, wherein the context of thesupport session comprises a communication between the customer and theat least one first level customer support agent, and wherein theindication is separate and distinct from the context of the supportsession; automatically assigning, by the at least one informationprocessing system based on parsing the context of the support session,at least one support category to the support session based on a supportcontext of the support session; associating, by the at least oneinformation processing system, the support session with one or moreannotations received from the at least one first level customer supportagent, wherein the one or more annotations are viewable by at least onesecond level customer support agent associated with the at least onesupport category assigned to the support session; and placing, by the atleast one information processing system, the support session into atleast one support queue for selection by at least one second levelcustomer support agent based on the at least one support categoryassigned to the support session.
 2. The method of claim 1, furthercomprising: maintaining a database of second level customer supportagents, wherein each second level customer support agent is associatedwith at least one support category.
 3. The method of claim 2, furthercomprising: monitoring the at least one support queue; and automaticallyassigning the support session to at least one second level customersupport agent, wherein the at least one support category assigned to thesupport session substantially matches the at least one support categoryassigned to the at least one second level customer support agent.
 4. Themethod of claim 1, wherein the support session comprises at least oneof: an instant messaging session between the at least one first levelcustomer support agent and the customer; and a voice call between the atleast one first level customer support agent and the customer.
 5. Acomputer program product for monitoring and organizing customer supportsessions based on categories, the computer program product comprising: anon-transitory storage medium readable by a processing circuit andstoring instructions for execution by the processing circuit forperforming a method comprising: receiving, by at least one informationprocessing system associated with at least one first level customersupport agent, a help request from a customer; establishing, by the atleast one information processing system, a support session with thecustomer based on the receiving; based on establishing the supportsession, monitoring the support session between the at least one firstlevel customer support agent and the customer; receiving, by the atleast one information processing system, an indication from the at leastone first level customer support agent that a second level customersupport agent is required to resolve the help request; parsing, by theat least one information processing system based on receiving theindication, a context of the support session, wherein the context of thesupport session comprises a communication between the customer and theat least one first level customer support agent, and wherein theindication is separate and distinct from the context of the supportsession; automatically assigning, by the at least one informationprocessing system based on parsing the context of the support session,at least one support category to the support session based on a supportcontext of the support session; associating, by the at least oneinformation processing system, the support session with one or moreannotations received from the at least one first level customer supportagent, wherein the one or more annotations are viewable by at least onesecond level customer support agent associated with the at least onesupport category assigned to the support session; and placing, by the atleast one information processing system, the support session into atleast one support queue for selection by at least one second levelcustomer support agent based on the at least one support categoryassigned to the support session.
 6. The computer program product ofclaim 5, wherein the method further comprises: maintaining a database ofsecond level customer support agents, wherein each second level customersupport agent is associated with at least one support category.
 7. Thecomputer program product of claim 6, wherein the method furthercomprises: monitoring the at least one support queue; and automaticallyassigning the support session to at least one second level customersupport agent, wherein the at least one support category assigned to thesupport session substantially matches the at least one support categoryassigned to the at least one second level customer support agent.
 8. Themethod of claim 5, wherein the support session comprises at least oneof: an instant messaging session between the at least one first levelcustomer support agent and the customer; and a voice call between the atleast one first level customer support agent and the customer.